Thursday, Jul. 02, 2009

Conklin signs on with Blues

He'll provide support behind Mason in goal

Good things seem to happen when Ty Conklin joins NHL teams.

The St. Louis Blues' latest goaltending acquisition has been part of three of the last four Stanley Cup finals while playing for Detroit, Pittsburgh and Edmonton.

He was with the Red Wings this season and the Penguins in 2007-08.

"The last two years I've been on the wrong side both times," said Conklin, who signed a two-year deal worth $2.6 million to help share the workload with Chris Mason. "It's no fun losing, especially when you get that close, but it's still a great thing to be part of."

Conklin noted the Blues' strong second-half surge last season that carried them into the playoffs.

"I was pretty impressed," he said. "They piled up a lot of points and passed a lot of teams. I know the playoffs didn't go quite the way they wanted them to go at the end, but that last couple months I don't think anybody really wanted to play St. Louis."

The 33-year-old Conklin factored into Detroit's success last season, compiling a 25-11-1 record with a career-high six shutouts, 2.51 goals-against average and .909 save percentage.

When starter Chris Osgood was struggling, especially in February, Conklin did more than fill the void. He played well enough that some fans wanted him to start in the playoffs instead of Osgood, who responded by leading the Wings to the finals before losing to Pittsburgh.

"The last two seasons have been pretty nice," said Conklin, whose backup spot behind Osgood will be taken by Jimmy Howard. "Even though I didn't play in the playoffs, I felt like I had a hand in helping the teams get there. Those are the kinds of things you want to build on."

In 149 NHL games with Edmonton, Columbus, Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Detroit, Conklin is 73-43 with a 2.58 goals-against average, 10 shutouts and a .909 save percentage.

"When we struggled the first half of the season, he picked me up and was the guy that carried us for a while," Osgood told NHL.com during the playoffs. "If he wouldn't have been playing well, it would have been worse than it really was."

Signing Conklin allows the Blues to keep their top two goaltending prospects -- Ben Bishop and Jake Allen -- in the minors where they can gain valuable experience without being rushed to the NHL.

"We have good young goaltenders in our system, but we needed some experience and that allows those young goaltenders to continue their development," Blues President John Davidson said. "We're bringing a person in that's had a good record, been in good organizations, and he really wanted to come here. He's a good person to work with Chris as a pair."

The Blues also continued their collection of ex-Red Wing goaltenders, adding Conklin to a list that includes former Blues netminders Chris Osgood and Manny Legace.

There were other goaltending options, but the Blues felt Conklin was a better fit. New Jersey backup Scott Clemmensen signed a three-year, $3.6 million deal with Florida, Dwayne Roloson signed a two-year, $5 million contract with the New York Islanders and Brian Boucher signed a two-year, $1.85 million deal with Philadelphia.

Former Chicago goalie Nikolai Khabibulin had the biggest financial windfall, signing with Edmonton for four years and $15 million.

"We weren't going to run out and sign Khabibulin," Davidson said. "We feel comfortable with Chris Mason and now with Ty. Ty was the main guy we had on our list to sign."

The Blues may still be on the lookout for a veteran offensive defenseman, whether it's Mathieu Schneider, Sergei Zubov or another affordable option.

"We're looking, but you can see on the first day that the prices were pretty expensive," Davidson said. "There's some good hockey players there, but you're paying a premium. We're going to have young people that are going to have to be re-signed."

Conklin has already enjoyed a memorable hockey career.

He's the only players to participate in all three of the NHL's outdoor Winter Classic games. Born in Arizona, Conklin grew up in Anchorage, Alaska and played at the famous Shattuck-St. Mary's prep school in Minnesota.

He signed with the Edmonton Oilers as an undrafted free agent after a stellar career at the University of New Hampshire.

Conklin once made 83 saves for Hamilton in a quadruple-overtime 2-1 victory over Houston in the AHL's 2003 Calder Cup finals.

He's ready to start a new challenge with the Blues.

"First and foremost, I need to be a good teammate," Conklin said. "I have what I think is a good work ethic and I'm a guy that's prepared to play every night."